Is this the most Swedish video you've ever seen?
A Swedish ice skater has spoken to The Local about the global attention he has been getting after he helped save a wild boar's life in an extremely, extremely Swedish way.
Sweden is one of the world's best nations at curling, a winter ice sport in which players shuffle stones on ice using brooms (if you have to ask you'll never understand), but this group of friends took the Olympic sport to a new level when they tried to help a family of wild boar who had got stuck on the ice.
"We first saw them at a distance out on the ice when we came skating. They looked like bags, but when we got closer we saw that they were wild boar. When we got closer they started to wriggle," said Jakob König.
The animals had somehow managed to get themselves stuck on a small island in the middle of the archipelago, and when the water froze over they were unable to get enough traction on the slippery surface to be able to make their way to land.
"I thought, maybe you could push them into land? They were about 200 metres from the shore," he said.
Sweden is believed to be home to a rapidly increasing population of more than 150,000 wild boar, who usually shy away from humans, but can be aggressive if backed into a corner, so don't try poking them with sticks or curling brooms at home, readers.
However, these particular beasts just seemed to be happy to get off the ice.
"We noticed that it was safe and started to push them. They were very exhausted. Some of them I had to give an extra push in the backside so that they could get out," said König.
VIDEO: Five top tips for staying safe on the ice in Sweden
By Wednesday the video had gone viral both in Sweden and afar, with some international viewers arguing that the wild boar-themed curling session on ice was possibly the most Swedish rescue operation they had ever watched.
"It's great. Really. Just skating on natural ice is exotic in itself! And they were very cute, even though they gruntled and wriggled," laughed König.
Interview by Emma Lidman
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Sweden is one of the world's best nations at curling, a winter ice sport in which players shuffle stones on ice using brooms (if you have to ask you'll never understand), but this group of friends took the Olympic sport to a new level when they tried to help a family of wild boar who had got stuck on the ice.
"We first saw them at a distance out on the ice when we came skating. They looked like bags, but when we got closer we saw that they were wild boar. When we got closer they started to wriggle," said Jakob König.
The animals had somehow managed to get themselves stuck on a small island in the middle of the archipelago, and when the water froze over they were unable to get enough traction on the slippery surface to be able to make their way to land.
"I thought, maybe you could push them into land? They were about 200 metres from the shore," he said.
Sweden is believed to be home to a rapidly increasing population of more than 150,000 wild boar, who usually shy away from humans, but can be aggressive if backed into a corner, so don't try poking them with sticks or curling brooms at home, readers.
However, these particular beasts just seemed to be happy to get off the ice.
"We noticed that it was safe and started to push them. They were very exhausted. Some of them I had to give an extra push in the backside so that they could get out," said König.
VIDEO: Five top tips for staying safe on the ice in Sweden
By Wednesday the video had gone viral both in Sweden and afar, with some international viewers arguing that the wild boar-themed curling session on ice was possibly the most Swedish rescue operation they had ever watched.
"It's great. Really. Just skating on natural ice is exotic in itself! And they were very cute, even though they gruntled and wriggled," laughed König.
Interview by Emma Lidman
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